U Páva by Jenny Pidgeon

The ‘U Páva’ hotel is situated on the corner of a leafy square near the riverfront, a few minutes walk from the Charles Bridge. It expanded a couple of years ago and now boasts 19 double rooms and 8 suites with great views of the Castle or Bridge, along with some of the cosiest and most evocative public rooms in Prague. The historical atmosphere of the building has been successfully retained and the U Páva is a visual feast of stained glass, painted walls, carved ceilings, and rich fabrics.

You enter into a small reception area (complete with lute-playing cherub above your head) which leads off down a long narrow corridor, lined with pillars and affording a glimpse of a brightly coloured painted staircase at one end. The ground floor is a mini-warren of such corridors, opening into intimate public rooms like the sitting room with its open fire, inviting leather sofas and intricate painted ceiling. There is a tiny bar and a winding breakfast area with panelled wooden ceilings, chandeliers, antique pieces and stained glass windows. There is a formal function-room restaurant in red and green with wood-panelling on the walls, but you should instead make your way down to the basement where you will come across a tiny restaurant which has been created in an old wine cellar. With only six tables, each surrounded by sumptuous leather armchairs,and frescoed archways contrasting against the cellar-stone ceilings, this intimate hideaway serves up Czech and French cuisine.

Climb the old staircase with stained glass ceiling to the guestrooms on the higher floors. The rooms are individually decorated, combining antique beds, rich elegant fabrics and drapes, and deep rugs covering wooden floors, with modern amenities such as televisions and minibars. Windows look out onto the Castle and the pretty surrounding area, the views making up for small bathrooms, which are nonetheless attractively tiled and contain all you might need. U Páva and its sibling U Krále Karla are two of the most romantic and tasteful hotels in Prague, attracting many repeat clients who know a good thing when they see it.